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Mascherano: "I know how difficult it is to play in this stadium"

The Argentinean, who played away to Benfica with Liverpool in 2009/10, predicts the match against the Portuguese side will be very tough
The midfielder doesn't believe that this week, with the Champions League fixture and the Clásico, is necessarily more vital than other weeks

Javier Mascherano at the Da Luz Stadium / PHOTO: MIGUEL RUIZ - FCB

Javier Mascherano knows what it’s like to play at Da Luz Stadium. The Argentinean faced Benfica in the 2009/10 season when he played for Liverpool. “I know how difficult it is to come to this stadium and secure a good result. I have a lot of respect for Benfica because I’ve had a first hand experience of what it’s like to suffer here,” said Mascherano. The Argentinean also warned of the heated atmosphere

Time to focus on Benfica

The player knowns that a lot of attention is being placed on this Sunday’s Clásico, but he warned that the team needs to focus its attention on the Champions League fixture at Da Luz Stadium. “Both matches are important but the match against Benfica is more important because we have to face them sooner. We’ll have enough time to focus on the Clásico,” he said. Mascherano also noted that every match Barça plays is important: “The pressure of playing for a team like this means that you have to win every match. Every week is important, but I don’t think this one is necessarily vital. Not getting a good result doesn’t mean we’re out of any competition.”

“We were the superior side”

When asked about Barça’s recent string of comebacks, Mascherano admitted that he wishes “the results and the way the games played out could have been different. I wish the games could have been more calm, that we could have won by a larger margin. But after analysing the way we played it’s evident that we were superior to Spartak, Granada and even Sevilla.” On Barça’s most recent game, the player highlighted the team’s fighting spirit: “It’s always hard to play away to Sevilla, but we never gave up”

Song’s performance as a center back

Mascherano played alongside Alex Song in the middle of the defence at the Sánchez Pizjuán. On the performance of the Cameroon international, Mascherano said: “He’s done a great job in the short time that he’s been here. I’m sure that as time goes on we’ll get to see much more of his qualities. He comes from a team that’s managed by a demanding manager, where they employ similar concepts to ours.”

Encouraging Thiago

Mascherano also encouraged and wished Thiago a speedy recovery. Thiago will be out of action for eight weeks after he sustained an injury in the match against Sevilla.